Maria Hutchings - Conservative - VIDEO
Maria Hutchings
Conservative Eastleigh by-election candidate Maria Hutchings pledged to win Eastleigh residents' hearts and prove she is worthy of being their MP.
The 51-year-old said she would be focusing on the economy and its effect on people's everyday lives.
The mother-of-four, from West End, lost to Chris Huhne at the last General Election, but has been the Conservative party spokesperson in Eastleigh for several years.
On a local level, she continues to oppose the gravel pits, such as in Hamble, and questions the scale of the Liberal Democrat controlled borough council's plan to build 9,400 homes in the borough over the next 17 years, describing it as "overdevelopment".
She said an overriding issue was the economy and told the Daily Echo that people in Eastleigh were worried about whether they had enough money for food, heating and petrol.
Mrs Hutchings, who works in new business development and advertising, wants to help small to medium sized businesses and said, with her 31 years' business experience, she understood what was needed to help businesses grow.